LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Trainer Wayne Lukas stood at a lectern in the sprawling press box at Churchill Downs. He was talking to reporters after the announcement Tuesday of his election to the Racing Hall of Fame.
"I want to see all you guys up here again," Lukas said as the session wound down. "I want to see you about 5:54 p.m. on Saturday."
That would be just about the right time for the post-Kentucky Derby news conference, at the same lectern. With Lukas, the major race wins and the accolades have come as though released from a free-running spigot. But his mind-set has always been wrapped around the tomorrows. A Hall of Fame inductee one day, a Kentucky Derby winner a little later? Lukas thought that had a nice ring to it.
He's going to sneak up on this Derby if he's to win the race for the fourth time. His two horses, Cat Thief and Charismatic, are taking a back seat to the two from trainer Bob Baffert's barn, General Challenge and Prime Timber, in the betting. Lukas believes, however, his colts still have good chances.
"Wayne is the eternal optimist," said Bob Lewis, who co-owns Charismatic with his wife Beverly.
The Lewises and Lukas could have lost Charismatic--twice--for a $62,500 claiming price in California, but now the colt seems to be peaking. After running a poor fourth in the Santa Anita Derby, he won the Lexington Stakes at Keeneland in impressive fashion April 18. Handicappers who try to assess how fast a horse runs by distilling the time into a raw number usually leave Lukas cold. But now the figures for the Lexington--1 1/16 miles run in 1:41--are in favor of Charismatic, so he is embracing them.
Charismatic has won only two of seven starts this year, but that's still better than the underachieving Cat Thief, who has earned $281,500 finishing second and third twice each in four winless races. Still, Cat Thief ran a creditable second to Menifee in the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland, and if you like Menifee--which many do--you also have to like Cat Thief a little bit. At least that's the way Lukas sees it.
Of Lukas' three Derby wins, two were stealthy affairs. In 1995, Thunder Gulch drubbed the field at 24-1, even though he had won the Florida Derby. The next year, Lukas ran five horses, but didn't talk much about Grindstone. The colt nailed Baffert's Cavonnier at the wire in the last jump and paid $13.80.
"The only reason I didn't talk much about him was because you guys [the press] never asked me about him," Lukas said.
